Windies looking forward to fast pitch in St. Lucia - Vasbert Drakes

Windies assistant coach Vasbert Drakes says the team is looking forward to the start of the third Test against England in St. Lucia on Saturday.

The West Indies lead the series 2-0 having dominated the series largely through the exploits of their fast bowlers. Kemar Roach leads all bowlers in the series so far with 13 wickets. Shannon Gabriel and Alzarri Joseph have also enjoyed bowling success with seven and five wickets, respectively.

With the pitch at the Darren Sammy Cricket Ground promising to offer help to the quicks, Drakes believes the Windies bowlers can feast once more.

“We are all really looking forward to playing in St Lucia. It reminds me of the wickets that were prepared for us, the West Indians, in the 1970s and ’80s. That’s the environment we are trying to create,” said the former Windies pace.

“The objective is to make sure we have pace. Kemar Roach has really started to mature as a bowler and Shannon Gabriel has the X-factor for us. I’m really excited to be part of this squad where we continue to put fear in opposition hearts.”

That fear helped the Windies bowlers during the 70s and 80s and Drakes sees an opportunity for the team to take advantage once again.

“I wouldn’t use the words so strong to say intimidate with pace but when you have pace, as someone who played the game as a fast bowler, it gives you more options of being able to outfox the batters. At the moment that’s what we have in our favour so we are re going to utilise it to our advantage on the cricket field,” he said.

Drakes praised the young team for the tremendous showing over the last two weeks and said he expects another good showing in the final contest.

“The sky is the limit for this side as they continue to grow. The guys understand the legacy of West Indies cricket and they want to continue to inspire the next generation of cricketers to play the game. The guys are playing really good cricket. I’m really proud as a former West Indies cricketer. All kudos to the players,” Drakes said

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Prime Minister of Grenada Dr. Keith Mitchell has insisted that a change of structure should be the primary focus of the next Cricket West Indies (CWI) boss, following the announcement of a challenge to incumbent president Dave Cameron.

After four terms in charge of the regional body, Cameron will face a challenge from former Windies team manager Ricky Skerritt, when the organisation goes to the polls next month.

Mitchell, who has at times found himself in an adversarial relationship with regional cricket’s leadership team in recent years, however, believes very little will be different unless the new leader is willing to focus on decades-long structural deficiencies.

“30-50 years ago Governments were operating one way in terms of how they governed countries. They made you believe they could solve all your problems, ‘just vote for me’. That has changed dramatically, businesses had to change over the years and be more transparent,” Mitchell told the SportsMax Zone.

“Trade Unions had to also recognize that it was not about getting increases in salary but also getting productivity, it’s a competitive world. Similarly, sporting bodies cannot operate a 19 century, 20th-century system in the 21st century,” he added.

A 2015 CARICOM-commissioned Governance Report – authored by prominent regional academic and UWI Cave Hill principal Professor Eudine Barriteau – had called for the “immediate dissolution of the West Indies Cricket Board and the appointment of an Interim Board.”

“The chop and change of presidents in my view is not going to solve the problems that are plaguing West Indies cricket. The attitude and structure that we have in place and the transparency and accountability has to be a fundamental issue also.”